Wednesday, October 21, 2009

John Follain’s Book And At Least One Other On Meredith’s Sad Case Due Out In January

Posted by Peter Quennell


The verdict in the case is tentatively expected around the end of the first week in December and the first of the books will be out about six weeks later.

Please expect detailed reviews of all the books here on TJMK.

Our criteria for judging all the books is really pretty simple. One, will they be accurate on all the evidence and fair to the Italian system? And two, will they tell us sympathetically much more than we already know about the wonderful person that was Meredith? Or will they simply obsess further about the two defendants? 

Everything we know about John Follain (above), the Italy correspondent for the UK Sunday Times, from John’s past reporting on the case, from his past books, and from comments about him by those who work with him in Rome and greatly respect him, is that John is scrupulously fair, never ever sensational, and increasingly well researched on who Meredith really was.

We are still waiting to see what angle Nina Burleigh will be taking in “Cottage in Perugia” but we are hopeful. And we can probably kinda anticipate what one-note angle Candace Dempsey’s “Murder In Italy” will be taking.

Oh and this just for the record. Nearly a million people dropped by TJMK seeking to know Meredith in the past year.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 10/21/09 at 07:46 PM in Various hypothesesNews media & moviesExcellent reporting

Comments

10/21/09

I’m looking forward to Follain’s book. I hope it highlights Meredith’s personality and personal history. She still seems to be the mystery in this case.

Posted by Hopeful on 10/22/09 at 04:26 AM | #

peter, your last sentence encouraged me.  as i was reading this post i kept thinking that it is a shame that the only exposure to this case for many is larry king or the occasional sightings of amanda’s parents on morning shows.  i am so convinced that the reporting on this site is and always has been fair and accurate that i have wished for a wider audience - a more noticeable platform.  i am dismayed that most of the people i introduce to this case have never heard of it.  i wish it had received more notice during the last 2 years.  will eagerly await the book reviews.

Posted by gramjan on 10/22/09 at 04:43 AM | #

Nice sentiments, Hopeful, and Gramjan, and by email our driven friend Professor Snape.

It is rumored but not yet confirmed in the industry - and we do tend to have a way of being right on the news! - that a truly remarkable book about Meredith will sooner or later be appearing. 

It is perhaps worth noting for the record that none of us knew very much about Meredith when we began - only that she seemed to us smart, funny, very kind, and very graceful and laughing to look at. And that the truly contemptible Knox PR campaign was trying hard to overshadow her as the true victim.

Impressions from some of those who knew her trickle in and all of the above gets confirmed - in spades. In every respect, she excelled. She was seemingly quite extraordinarily smart, and her Italian on arrival in Italy was already fluent. And when she and others were together, it was to her that all eyes tended to go.

In June her father remarked that Meredith was thinking of heading for Brussels on graduation to work with the international organizations.

Until her life was sadly cut short, quite possibly with jealous rage as a driver, she seemed to have absolutely everything going for her.

She really deserves that book.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 10/22/09 at 09:15 AM | #

Tut, tut, tut, Pete. 

You know for me the jury is still out for this book. But I do look forward to spending my cold cash on the book featuring Meredith!

Posted by Professor Snape on 10/22/09 at 04:15 PM | #

Hi Snape. That’s true on you and John’s book. I referred really to how you always feel about Meredith, and how you so very much want all of the books to get things just right about her.

Posted by Peter Quennell on 10/22/09 at 05:00 PM | #

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